"He can define how future generations play tennis" - Todd Woodbridge on Carlos Alcaraz

Carlos Alcaraz could end up defining how men's tennis is played in the coming years, says Australian doubles legend Todd Woodbridge.

Alcaraz won his first-ever Masters 1000 title in Miami last week, becoming the third-youngest men's player in history to do so. Alcaraz has left pundits and fans alike speculating just what heights he can touch during his career ahead, with Woodbridge comparing him to other prodigies of the past and believing the Spaniard's breakout comes at a particularly opportune moment.

He said:

"He definitely has an X-factor, but his timing couldn't be better. There have been some great young players who came through when you had Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic at their best. So you had three game styles, and you had to beat all three to get to the top. Whereas now, there isn't as much to have to worry about with the top talent -- both his peer group, the generation above, and then the Big Three who have dominated."

Woodbridge further said:

“Alcaraz now has this window to be able to build his game, to be the dominant player. At 18, he's still maturing, he's still going to grow his game. Technically he's sound, he's going to get stronger. He has a period of time now to be able to make his game style the best and the hardest to beat, and he's going to set the base platform of what this next generation of players is going to be playing like."

And more:

"It's his ability to keep winning. He’s 18-2 for the season. It is winning a Masters title. But it's not just one result – it's been that trajectory that we haven't really seen. [With other rising stars] we've seen an upward curve and then a plateau and then a little dip, before we've seen an upward curve again."